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.. 'DOCUMENT RHUMB) CG 014 561 ED 199 536 41, AUTROR Trent, Curtis: And Others TITLE The Influence of in Educational Intervention Module on Death and Dying on Death Anxiety/ Life Satisfaction and Locus of Control Among Middle Agtd and Older Adults in North Carolina. Summary and Workshop Guide. INSTITUTION . North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh. 9PONS AGENCY Worth Carolina State Unit., Raleigh. Dept. of Adult andCoimunity Coll. Education. 4 PUB DAT°E Jan 90 NOTE 90p.: Sponsored in part by the NRTA-AARP. Andrus Foundation. 2DPS PRICE MF01/PC04 Plus Postage.- abESCRIPTORS \ *Anxiety: *Attitude Change: *Death:Intervention: *Locus of Control: Middle Aged Adults: Older Adults: *Program Effectiveness: Program Evaluation: Training Methods iDENTIF(E4 *Life Satisfaption: *North Carolina ABSTRACT . The research findings of many.thanatologistslave broulht an awareness to the general public that the study ofdeath and dying is an appropriate and instructional teed for manypeople. The attitudes of middle aged and older adults regardingdeath anxiety, life satisfaction: and .locus of control were examined to determine whether adults would change their beliefs after participation in a 12-hour educational intervention module on death, and dying. Results indicated that as lifesatisfaction increased, death anxiety decreased. Respondents in poor health expressed signifigantly more death anxiety than respondents irvgood or excelleit health. Subjects with higher levels of internal control . registered higher life satisfaction. Data collected 7..fter, workshop participation showed that sublects ekperienced a significant decrease in death anxiety. (The leader's guide for the workshop and a list of,* supplementary Materials are also included.) (Author/HLM) **3011300****************************11W****WW*******************###*# * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made '* * frnm the oniginal document. * *X, Fr% Lt1 C7 THE INFLUENCE OF AN EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTiONMODULE ON DEATH AND DyING , ON DEATH ANXIETY, LIFE SATISFACTION, AND UOCUS OF CONTROL AMONG MIDDLE AGED AND OLDER ADULTS IN NORTH CAROLINA by Curtis Trent Professor and 'Rate Leader of Extension Training North Carolina State University J. Conrad Glass, Jr. Associate Professor, Adult and Community College4Education North Carolina State University and Ann YMcGee Research Assistant Department of Adult and Community College Education North Carolina State Uhiversity U S DEPARTMENT OF MEL "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS EDUCATION & WELFARE MAtERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION THis DocumE NT HA5 BE EN LRE PRO. DuCED EXACTLY AS RECEIvED FRONT THE PERSON OR ORGANIZAIIDN ORIGIN. ATING IT POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRE- SENT OFFICIAL NATIONAL !NISI ITuTE OF . C. TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES E P051 flON OR POL ICY 2 INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." Supported. by: The NRTA-AARP.Andrus Foundation and the , 10 Department of Adult and Community College Education tr1 North Carolina State University CD January, 1980 ABSTRACT THE INFLUENCE OF AN EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTION MODULE ON DEATH AND DYING ON DEATH ANXIETY, LIFE -..... SATISFACTION,AND'LOCUSOFC6NTROL AMONG MORI AGED. AND OLDER ADULTS IN NORTH CAROLINA by. Curtis.Trent, J. Conrad Glass, Jr., and Ann Y. McGee le primary purpose of the study was to determine whether middle \ aged and older adults' attitudes regarding death anxiety, li*fe satis- s' factiontand locus of control could ba changed significantly through 0 participting.in a 12-hour educational intervention module on dea .indAying. ,A second purpose was to determine the extent to which certain personal and situational characteristics of respondents were associated with pretest levels of death anxiety, life satisfactiien, andlodus f control. 'The sample consisted of 207 middie aged and older adults from various sections of.the State of North Carolina. The experimental group numbered 94 and 113 people constitoted the control group. A special effort Was made to insure representativeness in the control group as compared to the experimental group. Special attention was givea to such participant characteristics as age, sex, education, income, health, race and marital status. Participation was voluntary. The studyemployed the pretest4-treatment4-.posttest destgn. The experimental group participdted ina series of six two-hour workshops entitled "Death-LThe Fulfillment of Life," designed by the researchers. The control group.received no instruction but completed the.pretest and posttest. 3 "'An adaptation of Templer's Death Anxiety Scale, Neugarten, Havighürst, and Tobin's Life Satisfactjon Scale, and Rotter's ocus of Control Scale were administered to all participants inthe,study ar. pretests and posttests Statistical techniques employed ilcluded: Pearsonproduct-moment correlation coefficient, least squarks means analYsis, stepwise regression, and'the t-te§t. Analysis of the data revealed significant relationship) between respondents' pretest levels of death anxiety, lifesatisfac4ion,and locus of control and many of the variables examined. Life;satisfac- tion and health were significantly related to pretat levelsof death anxiety. As life satisfaction increased, death anxiety de:Creased. Respondents who considered theii" health "poor" registeredOgnificantly greater death anxiety than those who consider$Oheirheaith "good" or "excellent." Those who thought mole frequently about death registered higher death apxiety lhan those who ttought lessfrequently about it,.Respondents who were fearful or depressed,thd.se'who felt uncomfortable about .talking with others about the otherperson's terenal illness, and those who.were afraid to die had significantly higher death anxiety than those on the other end of thecontinuum. "Fear of dying" accounted for 42.9,percentsof the variationin pretest death anxiety scores. Four variables were found to be significantly related to pretest , ievels of life satisfaction (locus of control, death anxiety, frequency of thoughts about death,and,aWareness of one's own mortal- ity). Respondents with higher levels of internal control registered higher life satisfaction. Those With lower death anxiety had higher life satisfaction. Those who thought least frequently about dying 4 bad higher life satisfaction and those who responded mure p tively to their feelings regarding their own mortality registered higher life sutisfaction. Life satisfaction and family income were the only two variables significanth$ related to pretest locus of control. Those with high life satisfaction had high internal control scores. Although the relationship between family income and locus of control was signifi- cant, no particular patterR emerged. The major thrust of the study was to deter6ine whether the educational intervention module could effect changes in death aoxiety, life satisfaction,and locus of control. The t-test revealed that no significant changes occureed in levels,of life satisfaction and locus of conteol. However, there was a significant decrease in death 411 anxiety among participants in the workshop and no change in.the con- . trol group. Two respondent characteristics were significantly related IMP to the thange'in death anxiety--"fearof'dying" and "religious denomination." It was concluded that the educational intervention module did have an impact upon. the level ofdeath anxiety within the workshop group hut.other factors also Accounted for some qf the variance in change scores. ir ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ,. Appreciation is expressed to the NRTA/AARP* Andrus Foundation for the finahcial-support for this research project. Gratitude is.expressed to the following cooperating organizationsand Institutions for their assistanc in sponsoring the workshops: Cary Baptist Churt . Durham Technical Institute Friend& Home. Maryfield Nursing Home North Carolina State University Randolph Technical Institute . St. James United Methodist Church Southeastern Community College Wayne Community College North Cfrolina Agricultural Extension Service Western. Carolina University Appreciation is also extended to Harry Foley, Susan L.Harmuth, Sarah Jones, Libby Knott, Jean LeFrancois, H. L. Salisbury,and Joyce Wyatt for , of their invaluhble contribution in implementing theEducational Intervention I . Module and administering the questionnaires at theirrespective institutions. The 207 adults who voluntarily served as researchsubjects in this experi- . ment are particularly due recognition. 0 Hospice, Inc., of North Carolina contributed brochuresfor the work- shops for which appreciation is expressed. Consultation with Suzanne Gordon, Department ofStatiitics, North Caro- lina State University, on statistics and programmingprocedures deserves recognition. Ackriowledgement is expreised for the assistance rendered by Becky Griffith, Selma McEntire, Brenda Warren, and LoisMiller who shared in typing of the project material and numerous tasksrelated to project imple- mentation and complegin. 'The artistic creation Of the project logo, by Dr. William L. Gragg, also deserves recognition. A:special note of gratitude is expressed toRobert Jackson, who served as Research Assistant duringthe early stages of the project, for his con- tribution to the review of literatilre, research designand.conduoting of two of the workshops. *Nationalletired Teachers Association/American Association for Retired Persons SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS " Purpose The primary purpose of this study was to determinewheiher middle aged and older adults' attitudes regarding death anxiety, life satisfactimandlocus